Dream Theater: The Astonishing (now with moment of betrayal!)

[Lucien]

let's applaud the band for doing something outside the box, especially so late in their career.

This is all I was hoping for. Change.

[Implode]

It would be nice to hear Blob's opinion on the visual stuff.

I've been thinking this too.

[BlobVanDam]

I agree with noxon that the trailer didn't fully represent the album, but it's nice to finally have some new snippets out there. I was listening to the trailer, and aside from the snippet from Dystopian Overture, none of them are even from the songs I've heard and have been getting excited about over the thread. It doesn't show all of the variety, or many of the vocal sections which make up the vast majority of the album. Don't judge the album negatively based on a few seconds out of a 2+ hour album! I can't remember the last time I liked snippets, because they're out of context and too brief.

I disagree with noxon that metal fans will hate the album, unless you want to stereotype metal fans as incredibly narrow. While the metal isn't predominant, there are still some great headbanging moments. Perhaps if the only DT albums you like are TOT and SC, you'll hate it.
But if you enjoy beautiful melodic music, I think you'll love it. If all you care about is weedly weedly or chugga chugga, maybe you'll be disappointed it doesn't have enough, but that's not the album's problem.

Concerning the visuals, keep in mind they have over 2 hours of music to fill with video to tell the story, which is a tall order for the time and money. This also isn't in the context it was designed and intended for, so it's not how it would be experienced live.

[CDrice]

If all you care about is weedly weedly or chugga chugga, maybe you'll be disappointed it doesn't have enough, but that's not the album's problem.

What if all I care about is whahibrido pickingant? Will I like it?

[BlobVanDam]

If all you care about is weedly weedly or chugga chugga, maybe you'll be disappointed it doesn't have enough, but that's not the album's problem.

What if all I care about is whahibrido pickingant? Will I like it?

That depends on whether you're into the modern whahibrido pickingant, or whether you're a purist about the vintage whahibrido pickingant style. Some people say that JP's whahibrido pickingant technique isn't what it used to be, but I think it's very good here.

[ronnibran]

Obviously I have only heard a few percent of the album, but DANG am I excited!  I am getting vibes from 6DOIT, Black Clouds, Train of Though, SFAM.  Those are just my personal takes from the small snippets in the promo.

I was excited before, now I am REALLY excited.  The visuals in the promo don't bother me, it's not like they made a movie.  They made a concept album and I think what they threw together for a promo was more than enough.

[TL]

I do not post much here, but lurk. But will say this is the BEST source of DT info. I respect opinions, enthusiasm, or lack of etc. ,,As a fan since 1988, there are things I love and some I just say hey, they are DT and roll with it. I will be honest and say I am a HUGE DT guy, in their best and worst. That said, I find it oddly, yet not surprising, the amount of criticism on an album that for the most part only few have heard. How can you pre judge something you have not heard, seen etc. I equate it to  a wedding reception. Regardless how much the couple spends on it, 1/2 will like it, 1/2 will not. So be it. DT fans are fickle. Why do people let others make up a pre conceived notion in their mind how good an album will be. I never have understood that. Wait to hear and in this case. see the finished product. If you do not like it, that is up to you. If you like it, that is up to you. I never understood the concept of, well he/she thinks it is good or bad so I will roll with it. If you like or dislike after hearing it in its entirety, who am I to judge what you think. It is a personal call. I , and call me odd, do not put much thought into what others think is good or bad. If I like it I do, if not well then I do not. That is my choice. Do not be a sheep.

For me;
I obviously have no opinion on the album itself yet, since I haven't heard it.

I do have an opinion on the marketing material they've released so far, and that opinion is that I don't like it.

[fischermasamune]

I need to defend the visuals in the trailer. I actually like the mixed style, with realistic figurines over some backgrounds. Animations were pretty much as expected, but I think they fit well with the proposal. I wouldn't care if the whole concert had them in this shape, although they may be a bit distracting.

The trailer got me even more hyped. Now I decided to buy the album on stores to make sure no mail delay separates me from The Astonishing on 29th.

Hope I'm not excessively positive. 

[jsbru]

In my head I've been saying "Ravens-kill", but in the video they say "Raven-skill".

Raven-skill sounds funny.

Maybe the raven is skilled in whahibrido pickingant or however you spell it.

[jsbru]

That's pretty cool.  It was actually less cheesy than I thought.  I think this is going to be fun.

[jsbru]

You know, I often see the same argument about the general fantasy books with magic and dragons and whatever. I mean, if you dislike the setting, then fine, alright, maybe it's not for you, but in a lot of cases isn't not about the setting at all. It could be some fantasy medieval world, it could be a sci-fi dystopian world, it could be another planet and another race entirely, it could be a realistic setting in a World War II, it could be anything - the story isn't about the world. The setting, the world are just the instruments to fledge out the story. It could be a poignant dramatic tale about the struggle of two opposite factions and how it affects people - something that often happens in the real world, hell, something that happens in some countries right now - despite the fact it's set in some future with the flying orbs that play weird noise music. You make it sound like "pure fantasy world fiction" can't be relevant to many many people around the world.

Of course, it could be a total cheese-fest, but I don't know how you can discard an important aspect of the album released by one of your favourite bands just after you found out about the setting. I'll avoid judging the story before I've heard the full story.

And yeah, SFAM is indeed a classic concept album for many of people here, but for me it's definitely not because "it dealt with a subject that was very real world". For what it's worth, all the SFAM very "real world" was just a setting too, and the story wasn't exactly about that.

99% of all entertainment is fantasy.  Including and especially "reality TV."  At least fantasy is being up front with its viewers!

[jsbru]

How anyone can decide that the album is bad after three listens is beyond me. It's 2 hours and 10 minutes of music.

Then again, this is exactly the kind of reaction I expect from this album. This is why I've tried so hard to let people know what it is (or isn't).

I know the metal heads won't like it.

I know the people who are into the long instrumental wankoff sessions won't like it.

I know people who have not liked much of DT's output for the past 10 years have been very positive when they've heard stuff.

This makes me think I will really like it.  I do like some of DT's heavier songs, as Awake and TOT are two of my top 4 albums of theirs at this point (although I kind of disagree with how Awake gets classified as "heavy"...somber and a bit mysterious, yes, but 6:00, SM, LSOAD, SDV, and even IF are really not that heavy, and Scarred and Voices are pretty dynamic tone-wise).

I've been wanting to hear a more dynamic sound out of the band for a while.  ADTOE was my favorite album since Awake, but I was hoping for them to be even more dynamic than that.

[RaiseTheKnife]

The one gripe I have with the trailer is that it entirely misrepresents what the album is going to sound like. I get that it's because the melodic ballady stuff isn't exciting - but if you go out expecting a Prog metal bombastic album (which this trailer implies), well, you WILL be disappointed.

I'm actually glad they did this. I've been reading all your mentions of clean melodic music, and I'm really excited that when I hear it on the 29th, it'll be for the first time.

Me too.  I have no worries about DT drifting away from the bombastic metal stuff.  They've done that plenty of times (remember our DJENT fears after hearing DT12?).  Happy to hear DT explore their other strengths, particularly in the softer sonic range.

[ToT-147]

a TRU metalhead would never admit to liking Dream Theater.

FTFY..

About the video, I don't understand people complaining about the graphics and all the visual part.. Isn't Dream Theater a group of MUSIC?.. Who the f*ck cares about the videos they do?..

Music is the gift they bring..

Music..

[RaiseTheKnife]

The blinking.  The BLINKING!!  hahaha, I hope to see the characters blinking in the live 3D projection in the stage show.

[Progmetty]

The blinking.  The BLINKING!!  hahaha, I hope to see the characters blinking in the live 3D projection in the stage show.

Yes!
The scene with the kid riding the bird looks like something out of Frisky Dingo 

[jsbru]

a TRU metalhead would never admit to liking Dream Theater.

FTFY..

About the video, I don't understand people complaining about the graphics and all the visual part.. Isn't Dream Theater a group of MUSIC?.. Who the f*ck cares about the videos they do?..

Music is the gift they bring..

Music..

Yeah, not quite sure what people are expecting.  It's expensive and time-consuming enough to sit in a studio for a year writing a 2+ hour album.  God forbid DT doesn't release a full HD movie in Dolby 7.1 with Hollywood actors to go with it.  You really have to expect that the artwork (which is fantastic by my standards already) is just there to tell the story and not aimed at winning an Oscar.

If they did that, people would be complaining about the price.

[Bertie_Wooster]

I want to hear the rest of the guitar solo at the 1 min mark      The only metal I listen to on a constistent basis
is when it is played by dream theater.   Otherwise I would listen to White lion or Ratt but the new stuff is not that good
including Metallica.   I think this album will be the one I have always wanted them to make.  I loved "Leonardo : the absolute man"
that James sang on.    Instrumentally it was a little clunkY.     It seems like this album will be comparable but with the Majesty
of JP's guitar playing.

[Pragmaticcircus]

164 pages in and where ALMOST there!!!! 

[Ben_Jamin]

Since watching the trailer a lot of times, it feels more like a preview of the Live show more than the album.

[DarkLord_Lalinc]

The blinking.  The BLINKING!!  hahaha, I hope to see the characters blinking in the live 3D projection in the stage show.

Yes!
The scene with the kid riding the bird looks like something out of Frisky Dingo 

Avatar material, I tell ya

[Ben_Jamin]

Concerning the visuals, keep in mind they have over 2 hours of music to fill with video to tell the story, which is a tall order for the time and money. This also isn't in the context it was designed and intended for, so it's not how it would be experienced live.

Now this makes me excited. Accidentally skipped this before posting. Haha.

[Cedar redaC]

I just saw the trailer. The hype is real. Some of those excerpts from the album sound so epic. Kinda gothic too, and I'm looking forward to hearing it in a broader context.

[Fluffy Lothario]

The music sounds... okay. But as someone who doesn't like concept albums, I've a feeling this isn't gonna be for me.

I'll give it a listen though, I suppose.

[Darkstarshades]

So the Rudess-Petrucci writing all the music means JM and MM did nothing but playing over what the others had done?

[Billzo]

So the Rudess-Petrucci writing all the music means JM and MM did nothing but playing over what the others had done?

I'm pretty sure they will have written most of their respective parts, but writing drum parts or bass lines doesn't give you song writing credits. Had this with my band. Even though I wrote practically all of my drum parts for the album, I only received songwriting credits for the songs in which I had input into the overall arrangement, melody, or lyrics.

[Ben_Jamin]

This is their best. Just from the trailer(and at that, might be live) it's gonna be good. Trust me.

[Ben_Jamin]

164 pages in and where ALMOST there!!!! 

I'm literally at the edge of my seat....it's so close.

[Cyclopssss]

I'm reading comments of people being disappointed the shows will ONLY be 2 hrs 40 minutes long? Seriously?? FFS, go watch a f' in dvd and jerk off to it. The band is trying something new, something a bit different. Deal with it.

[Ben_Jamin]

I'm reading comments of people being disappointed the shows will ONLY be 2 hrs 40 minutes long? Seriously?? FFS, go watch a f' in dvd and jerk off to it. The band is trying something new, somethfawing a bit different. Deal with it.

I'm excited they're doing this. It feels amazingly great. Yet they don't know. We all dont....which is the best anticipated ever album...

[Jinx]

I agree with noxon that the trailer didn't fully represent the album, but it's nice to finally have some new snippets out there. I was listening to the trailer, and aside from the snippet from Dystopian Overture, none of them are even from the songs I've heard and have been getting excited about over the thread. It doesn't show all of the variety, or many of the vocal sections which make up the vast majority of the album. Don't judge the album negatively based on a few seconds out of a 2+ hour album! I can't remember the last time I liked snippets, because they're out of context and too brief.

I disagree with noxon that metal fans will hate the album, unless you want to stereotype metal fans as incredibly narrow. While the metal isn't predominant, there are still some great headbanging moments. Perhaps if the only DT albums you like are TOT and SC, you'll hate it.
But if you enjoy beautiful melodic music, I think you'll love it. If all you care about is weedly weedly or chugga chugga, maybe you'll be disappointed it doesn't have enough, but that's not the album's problem.

Concerning the visuals, keep in mind they have over 2 hours of music to fill with video to tell the story, which is a tall order for the time and money. This also isn't in the context it was designed and intended for, so it's not how it would be experienced live.

Blob are you doing any of the videos this time? Is that how comes you've heard some of it?

And I wonder if there is one dedicated artist for the whole thing or if there been a team? Some stuff might look different depending on the artist.

[me7]

About the video, I don't understand people complaining about the graphics and all the visual part.. Isn't Dream Theater a group of MUSIC?.. Who the f*ck cares about the videos they do?..

Music is the gift they bring..

Music..

Exactly. But instead of more singles as marketing material we get this video. We would love to have some music to disect and jump to conclusions about the whole album. Since this is all we have, we must look at the graphics and form opinions on the album that way.

...or we could shut up and wait for the release but hey, this is DTF afterall.

[wolfking]

Just watched the trailer and it's sounding quite promising.  Sounds heavy enough for me too.

[Vandalism]

After listening to the trailer and TGOM quite a few times, my only beef with the album is the drum sound. M not even a drummer and at first I used to think people are just splitting hairs when it comes to the drums. But after multiple listens the videos almost sound like they are very well made drum covers.

Is it out of sync compression/reverb (if there is such a thing!) with respect to the other instruments. The less cymbal volume is obvious.I mean the drum parts are awesome complementing multiple instruments simultaneously n all. So I guess something goes wrong in the recording/production.

Maybe the drummers out here can shed some light on this coz MM sounds great in his other projects too.

EDIT: I am pretty pumped about the album though! Its going to be my first preordered album!

[Darkstarshades]

And DT's Instagram still says "The Astonising"